Events notification and functions selection mechanisms in a wireless device

ABSTRACT

A panel has been provided to a wireless device that turns off all RF capability of the wireless device (including, but not limited to notifications, wireless web clipping, instant messaging, email sending/receiving, phone calls, etc.). The panel is brought up on a screen of the wireless device by pressing a programmed hard button for more than 1 second. Once the RF capability has been turned off, if the user attempts to access a program or other device that requires the RF capabilities, a notification is displayed that identifies the RF capabilities as being disabled and prompts the user whether to continue. If the user continues, the RF device is automatically enabled, otherwise the RF device remains disabled.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/769,626, filed Jun. 27, 2007, which is a continuation of U.S. Pat.No. 7,260,390, filed May 24, 2001, which is a continuation-in-part ofU.S. Pat. No. 6,928,300, filed Nov. 9, 2000, all of which areincorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains materialwhich is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has noobjection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent documentor the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and TrademarkOffice patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyrightrights whatsoever.

BACKGROUND

1. Field of Art

This invention relates generally to user interfaces and enablement ofradio capabilities of a wireless device. The invention is moreparticularly related to radio capability enablement and user interfacesfor phone and Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs).

2. Discussion of Background

Personal computer systems and their applications have become commontools in modern society. To organize their lives, many personal computerusers use personal information management applications such as anaddress book and a daily organizer on their personal computers. Althoughsuch applications have proven useful for personal informationmanagement, their utility is limited by the fact that the person must besitting at their personal computer system to access the information.

To remedy this limitation, palmtop computers, electronic organizers andother handheld devices, commonly known as personal digital assistants(PDA's), have been introduced. The PDA is a computer that is smallenough to be handheld or placed in a pocket, and allows a user and runvarious applications including personal information managementapplications such as address books, daily organizers, etc. Theseapplications make people's lives easier.

A popular brand of PDA is the Palm™. However, the Palm™ is much morethan a simple PDA. A basic configuration of the Palm™ 100 is shown inFIG. 1. This small, slim, device, about the size of your wallet, canhold 6000 addresses, 5 years of appointments, 1500 to-do items, 1500memos, 200 e-mail messages, and can run many different softwareapplications.

The front of the Palm™ 100 is a large LCD screen 110 which istouch-sensitive and allows a user to enter and manipulate data. A stylus(not shown) is provided with the Palm™ to help in making touch screeninputs. By using the stylus (or another handheld pointer) to interactwith a touch-sensitive screen, a palmtop user can easily navigatethrough a host of built-in programs, software, and other applications.

Today, the Palm™, PDA and other handheld computing devices (Palm tops)offer Internet connectivity capabilities, as well as a vast array ofhardware and software choices. Palmtops have evolved from simpleorganizers into a new kind of handheld that people use to instantlymanage all kinds of information, from email, to medical data, to stockreports.

Mobile telephones (cell phones, PCS, satellite phones, etc) are alsocommon tools in today's world. Many cell phones include rudimentaryfunctionality for maintaining telephone numbers and other functionalityto help alleviate the burdens associated with making calls and trackingphone numbers. In addition, the modern cell phone also has options forpersonalizing the style of various phone operations.

One trend in the PDA marketplace is the integration of radio basedservices into the PDA. One pioneering example is the Palm VIIx whichincludes RF capabilities to access a wireless network (palm.net) toprovide email and web-clipping internet access to users.

However, despite the great capabilities and conveniences of the modernPDA, and the cell phone, many innovations are needed for expanding thecapabilities and for increasing the convenience of using PDAs and cellphones.

SUMMARY

A disclosed system (and method and computer program product) includes aradio unit for communicating with a network, a memory device havingexecutable computer program instructions, and a processing unit forexecuting computer program instructions. The processing unit coupled tothe radio unit and the memory device.

One disclosed embodiment includes executable computer programinstructions for receiving an event through the radio unit, determininga notification mechanism associated with the event, determining whetherthe notification mechanism is scheduled to be off, issuing nonotification for the event responsive to the notification mechanismbeing scheduled off, and issuing a notification of the event responsiveto the notification mechanism being scheduled on and an occurrence of ascheduled notification time for the notification mechanism.

Another disclosed embodiment includes executable computer programinstructions for providing a plurality of functions utilizing the radiounit to communicate with the network, providing a selection mechanismfor a user to selectively enable or disable each of the plurality offunctions, and responsive to one of the plurality of functions beingdisabled, prohibiting the one of the plurality of functions fromaccessing the radio unit without affecting other functions of theplurality of functions utilizing the radio unit.

Both the system and method may be conveniently implemented inprogramming configured to be executed on a general purpose computer, ornetworked computers, and the results may be displayed on an outputdevice connected to any of the general purpose computer, networkedcomputers, or transmitted to a remote device for output or display. Inaddition, any components of the disclosed embodiments represented in acomputer program, data sequences, and/or control signals may be embodiedas an electronic signal broadcast (or transmitted) at any frequency inany medium including, but not limited to, wireless broadcasts, andtransmissions over copper wire(s), fiber optic cable(s), and co-axcable(s), etc.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete appreciation of the disclosed embodiments and many ofthe attendant advantages thereof will be readily obtained as the samebecomes better understood by reference to the following detaileddescription when considered in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a Palm™ handheld computer;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of selected components of an embodiment of aPDA device with radio frequency (rf) capabilities according to thedisclosed embodiments;

FIG. 3 is a screen shot on a Palm™ of an embodiment of a radio on/radiooff preferences dialog according to the disclosed embodiments;

FIG. 4 is a screen shot on a Palm™ of an embodiment of a preferences setradio ON/OFF times dialog according to the disclosed embodiments;

FIG. 5A is a screen shot of an example confirmation screen indicatingthat a PDA device having RF capability is airplane safe;

FIG. 5B is an example screen shot of a PDA having RF capabilityindicating the PDA is not airplane safe;

FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment of a set radio ON/OFFprocess according to the disclosed embodiments;

FIG. 7 is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment of a set scheduledradio ON/OFF process according to the disclosed embodiments;

FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment of a scheduleimplementation process according to the disclosed embodiments;

FIG. 9 is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment of an eventnotifications process according to the disclosed embodiments;

FIG. 10 is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment of device off warningand RF device activation procedures according to the disclosedembodiments;

FIG. 11 is a drawing of an example RF device off warning messageaccording to an embodiment of the disclosed embodiments;

FIG. 12 is a screen shot of an embodiment of a wireless panel for aradio off preference;

FIG. 13 is a screen shot of an embodiment of a wireless panel forselecting a radio preference;

FIG. 14 is a screen shot of an embodiment of a wireless panel for aradio on preference;

FIG. 15 is a screen shot of an embodiment of a wireless panel for aradio on schedule;

FIG. 16 is a screen shot of an embodiment of a wireless panel forselecting a radio on start time;

FIG. 17 is a screen shot of an embodiment of a wireless panel with auser selected radio on start time;

FIG. 18 is a screen shot of an embodiment of a wireless panel forselecting a radio end time; and

FIG. 19 is a screen shot of an embodiment of a wireless panel with userselected radio on start and end times.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring again to the drawings, wherein like reference numeralsdesignate identical or corresponding parts, and more particularly toFIG. 2 thereof, there is illustrated a block diagram of selectedcomponents of a handheld computer 200 that includes RF capabilities. Thehandheld computer 200 includes a processing unit 210, for executingapplications and an operating system of the computer 200, a memorydevice 220 for storing the operating system, data, and the applications.A memory bus 225 is utilized to transfer programs and data from memoryto the processing unit 210.

A display screen 230 is provided (preferably a touch sensitive screen)for display of Operating System prompts, buttons, icons, applicationscreens, and other data, and for providing user inputs via tapping ortouching (or drawing in the Graffiti™ area 120) via a stylus or othertouch mechanism. Hardware interface 235 connects to physical hardbuttons and switches located on a body of the computer 200 and providessignals to applications running on the processing unit 210.

An RF capable device 240 provides connectivity to a cellular telephonenetwork (not shown) or other RF network. The RF capable device 240 may,for example, be a cellular telephone or a Palm.net™ enabled radio devicefor wireless web-clipping, email, and other wireless connectivitycommunications. The RF capable device may also be a wireless Internetenabled radio device, such as Ricochet™, etc., pager, wireless e-maildevice, Family Radio System (FRS), or any of different mobiletelephones, including cellular, satellite, PCS, TDMA, GSM, etc. Althoughthe RF capable device is shown as an internal component to the computer200, the RF device may be contained in sled or other configuration thatattaches to an exterior of the computer 200, or may be a separate deviceconnected to the computer via a cable or other connection (wireless, IR,RS232, USB, Firewire, network connection, etc., for example).

A system bus 255 carries data and commands to/from the processing unit210 from/to other devices within or attached to the computer 200. Forexample, user applications running on the computer 200 send applicationscreens and other data outputs to display screen 230 for display via thesystem bus 255. User inputs (Graffiti™ area drawing, or tap selection,for example) are detected by the screen 230 and sent to the processingunit 210 via the system bus 255.

In addition to the operating system and user selected applications, anRF application, which may be a phone or other device that uses the RFdevice 240, having instructions stored in memory 220, executes on theprocessing unit 210. Alternatively, another hardware device may beincluded in computer 200 that utilizes RF device 240.

In one embodiment, the RF application is a phone device and the RFdevice is a wireless telephone. Phone calls from a network and directedtoward the RF device 240 are detected by the RF device and sent, in theform of an incoming call notification, to the phone device executing onthe processing unit 210. The phone device processes the incoming callnotification by notifying the user by an audio output such as ringing(not shown).

The phone device also includes a method for the user to answer theincoming call. For example, tapping on a phone icon, or pressing a hardbutton designated or preprogrammed for answering a call signals thephone device to send instructions (via system bus 255) to the RF device240 to answer the call.

Outgoing calls are placed by a user by entering digits of the number tobe dialed and pressing a call icon, for example. The dialed digits aresent to the RF device 240 along with instructions needed to configurethe RF device 240 for an outgoing call. Alternatively, the RFapplication is a web, palm.net, e-mail, or other RF communicationdevice, appropriate instructions are sent to the RF device 240 toinstruct or otherwise administer the communication. The Administrationof the communication may include, for example, communication of contentand a destination address to send the content to the RF device 240, orreceiving an email and storing it in memory (memory 220, for example)and/or displaying it to a user.

Preferably, the computer 200 is a PDA device having interactive hardwareand software that perform functions such as maintaining calendars, phonelists, voice or audio related functions integrated or attachablyintegrated (via a connector device, for example, not shown), and atleast one of these configured for use with the RF capabilities of thePDA. Several examples of a configuration and details of devices forconnecting or integrating voice function devices to a PDA are describedin Maes et al., U.S. Pat. No. ______, application Ser. No. 09/709,225,attorney docket no. 24530.00100, entitled, “INTEGRATING VOICE FUNCTIONINTO A PDA,” filed Sep. 29, 2000, the contents of which are incorporatedherein by reference in their entirety.

The software, including a phone or other RF applications, operatingsystem, and other general applications (word processors, spreadsheets,games, databases, etc.) 223 are stored in memory device 220 along withprogram data, graphics, and other data and executed on the processingunit 210.

Processing unit 210 executes the software, including the operatingsystem (OS, including a User Interface (UI) of the OS), and other userapplications as directed by user inputs. The user applications displayoutputs on the display screen 230 and receive inputs from taps, tap &hold, and writing operations on the display screen and from programmedhard buttons attached to the hardware interface 235.

Memory device 220 is constructed of RAM memory or ROM memory, or acombination of both ROM and RAM, and may include flash memorycomponents. In one embodiment, an operating system 222 resides on a ROMportion of the memory 220 and provides executable instructions toperform operating system functions of the handheld computer 200. Userapplications 223 generally reside in a RAM portion of the memory 220.The present invention is contained in a program stored on ROM. However,the invention may also be programmed within the operating system 222, ormay be a separate program contained in RAM or any other storage device(program 280, for example). When the present invention is invoked,computer instructions from the operating system 222 or program 280 areexecuted on processing unit 210 which issue commands that control the RFdevice 240 (e.g., enable/disable), or save or implement a schedule forenabling/disabling the RF device 240.

The above describes a basic environment (a cell phone or a PDA with RFcapabilities) in which the present invention is practiced. However, itshould be understood that many different electronic devices, includingcell phones, PDA's of different configurations and various integrated orattached devices and/or RF capabilities are also suitable environmentsin which the present invention may also be practiced.

FIG. 3 is a screen shot of a handheld computer device 300 executing anembodiment of the present invention and illustrating a Radio ON/OFFpreference screen according to the present invention. The handheldcomputer includes a series of hard buttons 301 that are programmable orhardwired to activate/deactivate various functions of the handheldcomputer, including, for example, turning the computer on or off,activating operating system functions, activating programs, etc. (powerbutton 303, rocker switch 305, and application button 306, for example).Touch sensitive areas 315 on the display screen 302 are alsoprogrammable to invoke various functions of the operating system or userapplications of the handheld computer. A status bar 320 includes ageneral screen identifier 325 (preferences in this example), apreference panels list trigger (icon) 330, and a subcategoryidentification 335 (wireless in this example). The preference panelslist trigger (icon) 330, when tapped, brings a pull down menu thatallows the user the option of switching to other preference screens(setting the time and date, entering user information, and otherpreferences, for example). A wireless preferences function 340 (RFNotification in this example) is displayed along with options 350 forsetting preferences for the RF device. In this example, the preferencesare being set for a general wireless device (e-g., RF device 240),however the preferences may be set for a palm.net type wireless device,or a cell phone, GSM phone, or other wireless communications oraccessories that may be included with or attached to the handheldcomputer 300. Individual preference screens may be provided for each ofmultiple wireless devices contained within or attached to computer 200.Alternatively, notification preferences for all the wireless devices maybe combined and administered from a single screen simplifying thewireless preferences notifications selections that are needed from theuser.

In one embodiment, the application button 306, when pressed by a userbrings up an application preprogrammed by the operating system to bebooted when application button 306 is pressed (a memo pad function, forexample). However, if the application button 306 is held down for a 1sttime period of approximately 1-2 seconds, a wireless preferencessubprogram (e.g., RF Notification) is launched and a display screen suchas that shown on display 302 in FIG. 3 is presented to the user. Thetime period that application button 306 is required to be held down toinvoke the wireless preferences subprogram is selected by the developer.Any time period may be used.

User selectable options 350 include RADIO ON 355 and RADIO OFF 360. Eachof these selectable options 350 are buttons displayed on the touchsensitive screen 302. However, any of the touch sensitive areas 315 orhard buttons 301 may also be programmed to perform the same functions(using the display screen 302 to advise the user on which buttonsperform these functions, for example). If the ON button 355 is pressed,wireless capabilities of the handheld computer 300 are immediatelyturned on and available for use by one or more applications or operatingsystem programs or hardware devices contained in or attached to thecomputer 300. Any LEDs or other indicating lights associated with an ONstatus of either the radio devices (wireless devices) or any enablednotifications are also turned on as confirmation. After the ON button355 is pressed, the devices wireless notifications, if enabled, willstart immediately if messages, emails, telephone calls, etc. arereceived on any one or more wireless channels of the handheld computer300. For examples of notifications that may be enabled when the RFdevice 240 is ON, the reader is directed to Skinner, application Ser.No. 09/710,156, referenced above.

If the RADIO OFF button 360 is pressed, the handheld computer 300 radiodevice(s) are immediately turned off. Again, any LEDs confirmingnotifications or the status of the radio device(s) are also turned offas confirmation. When the user presses RADIO OFF, the handheld computer300 is no longer RF enabled and the radio is absolutely turned off,making the wireless device safe for entering no RF enabled device zones(such as airplanes and certain hospital areas, or when the user goes tobed or is in another area where the wireless device should not be used(classrooms, etc.)). Turning the radio device(s) off in this manner alsoeffectively disables any applications using the radio device(s),including active applications initiated by the user or other programsand background applications that, for example, wake up at predeterminedintervals to check messages, e-mails, pages, etc.

A feature of the present invention is to allow a user a quick method forchecking a current status of the RF device. The process is to have abutton pre-programmed to launch a check routine (RF status check) thattests the RF device and then displays a message, icon, or otherindication of the RF status. In one embodiment, if the applicationbutton 306 is held down for a third time period (more than 3 seconds,for example), the check routine is invoked, and, if the RF device is notenabled, the appropriate indication is made (FIG. 5A, for example). Ifthe RF device is enabled, a contrary indication occurs (FIG. 5B, forexample). As with all the time periods discussed herein, any time periodmay be utilized, so long as conflicts between different time periods donot occur or are otherwise resolved.

In one embodiment, a single button (306, for example) is programmed forinvoking each of the RF notification screen, turning the radio on oroff, and the RF status check using the timed button hold down methoddiscussed above. Alternatively, these invocations may be made by anycombination of hard buttons, or combination of soft, touch sensitivebuttons and/or hard buttons.

Continuing now with FIG. 3, help button 380, when pressed, will give theuser specific directions on how to turn on or off the wireless device‘or set a schedule using the wireless preferences notification screen(FIG. 3, for example). Details button 385 provides the user withdetailed information regarding the RF Notifications (e.g., types of RFdevices enabled/disabled, or types of connections an RF device isconfigured, for example).

Turning now to FIG. 4, another embodiment of the RF Notifications Screenis illustrated. If the user presses the schedule button 401, a seconddialog (Set Radio ON/OFF Times 400) is displayed and the user can thenconfirm or set times that the user wants the RF device to be set on oroff. The Set Radio ON/OFF Times screen 400 includes an identificationbar 405 naming the screen. Information button (“i”) 410, when pressed,provides specific information about the Set Radio ON/OFF Times(including, for example, information that might also be included in ahelp screen explaining how to use any of various options within the SetRadio ON/OFF Times screen). A start time area 420 provides the user aninput area to indicate a start time when the RF device is to be enabled.An end time area 430 provides the user an area where an end time isspecified after which the RF device is to be disabled. In thisembodiment, the start and end times indicate a time period between whichthe RF device is to be enabled, and, in another embodiment, the startand end times indicate a period of time between which the RF device isto be disabled.

Although the present invention has been described with respect toenabling and disabling RF device(s), the present invention may also beutilized to enable and disable notifications, in tandem with RF deviceenablement/disablement or independently without necessarily enabling ordisabling the RF device (s). In addition, a set of checkboxes or otherselection mechanism may be provided to enable/disable multiple RFdevices or individual functions associated with those devices (enablecell phone and disable instant messaging, for example).

Once the start and end time of the Set ON/OFF Times screen dialog areset, the enabling and disabling of the RF device(s) (and, perhaps, theassociated notifications) will be handled automatically by theprogramming and/or electronics of the contained in or attached to thecomputer 300, for example. In one embodiment, the user must press an OKbutton 435 before start and end times will be set. Start and end timesentered by the user may be cancelled by pressing the cancel button 445(so long as the cancelled button is pressed before OK, previouslyexisting start and end times will not be changed).

Examples of Radio ON/OFF times are likely to be scheduled by a userinclude regular periods of sleep of the user, scheduled classes or staffmeetings, for example. In one embodiment, the Set Radio ON/OFF Timesscreen includes a date function that allows a user to select particulardates to be associated with the on/off and/or enabled/disabled times orto set recurring time intervals such as every Monday between 3:00 and5:00 or each weekday between 1:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. for example. Thusthe user is provided a flexible way to ensure that the cell phone orother RF device does not interrupt at scheduled times when it would beinconvenient or impolite to have a notification alarm or buzzer occur,or to completely disable the RF device during times when it would bedangerous or illegal to have an RF device operating (during hospitalvisits, or on an airplane, for example).

FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating a high level process according to anembodiment of the present invention. At step 600 the user initiates theRF notifications preferences screen. The screen may be invoked bypressing the application button 306 for between 1-2 seconds, forexample. The users actions are recognized by a program (0S 222, forexample) and the RF notifications dialog (see FIG. 3 for example) isdisplayed (step 610). User action such as selecting the RADIO ON button355 or RADIO OFF button 360 are received (step 620) by the program ofthe present invention. At step 630, the selected preferences are savedand the device (handheld computer 300, for example) is immediatelyconfigured according to those inputs.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment of processing involvedin setting scheduled Radio ON/OFF Times according to the presentinvention. At step 700, a user selects to set scheduled Radio ON/OFFtimes (pressing schedule button 401, for example). At step 710,currently saved preferences for the scheduled Radio ON/OFF times, ifany, are read (from RAM memory portion of memory 220, for example). Thecurrent preferences are then displayed along with a Set Radio ON/OFFTimes dialog (dialog 400, for example). Step 730 through 750 are a loopwhere a user updates the Set Radio ON/OFF Times (with a new start time,and/or a new end time and then pressing OK 435, for example), at whichpoint new start/end times are saved and the device is configuredaccording to the new times. In one embodiment, the Set Radio ON/OFFTimes dialog is exited on reconfiguration of the device (upon pressingOK for example). If the user makes an affirmative action to leave theSet Radio ON/OFF Times screen (pressing cancel, or initiating anotherscreen through one of the hard buttons or tapping another area of thescreen, for example) the Set Radio ON/OFF Times dialog is exited tobring up another function for example (without altering the previouslyset Radio ON/OFF Times). In another embodiment, as soon as the userenters a new start or stop time, it is saved and the PDA configuresalarms to implement the new times.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment of internal processingformed in accordance with the Set Radio ON/OFF Times of the presentinvention. When the device is configured based on the set notificationstimes, and internal OS alarm is set for each of the start and end timesset on the Set Radio ON/OFF Times dialog. This is performed when theuser sets the schedule (step 800) as described above. Assuming that thedevice is currently in an RF disabled state, at some point the starttime alarm (an alarm set according to the start time of the setnotification times screen) occurs (step 710). When the start time alarmoccurs, the RF device (and, perhaps, notifications) are enabled (turn RFdevice on step 720). Now that the RF device and notifications areenabled, when the end time (set on the set notifications times dialog)is reached a second internal OS alarm occurs (step 730), and the RFdevice(s) are disabled (turn RF device off step 740).

FIG. 9 is an example embodiment of processing that occurs when an eventoccurs (step 900) requiring the RF device and/or a notification (e.g.,incoming call, email, etc.). If the RF device is on (user had previouslypressed ON button 355, for example), or the event occurs within aschedule (as prescribed by the set notification times dialog 400, forexample) (step 910), then, the RF device is able to recognize or acceptthe event call, email, etc. An event notification is sent to the programor device controlling the RF device that receives the incoming event(step 920). After receiving the event notification, the control programdetermines if notifications are set. If disabled, the incoming event issent to a corresponding storage location (step 955), such as, forexample, voicemail for a phone call event, and inbox for an email event.

If notifications are enabled, the control program reads the userpreferences (step 930), that indicate the type of user notification tobe utilized (ringer, vibrator, etc.). At step 940, the user notificationis activated (ringing a bell, or vibrating the device, for example). Ifat the time the event occurs, the notifications are off, or not withinthe schedule set by the user in the set notifications times dialog, theRF device is off and unaware of the event and no action occurs (step950).

In addition to turning the RF device on and off, the processes of thepresent invention may also be applied to the manner in whichnotifications are received. For example, additional user options mayinclude specific scheduled time periods and types of notification to beused in conduction with the RF device ON/OFF times. For example, settingnotifications to ring between 7:01 AM and 10:59 PM, settingnotifications to vibrate mode every Tuesday and Thursday from 1 PM to 3PM and every Wednesday from 5 PM to 8 PM and setting the RF device to beoff (also disabling all notifications associated with the RF device)between 11 PM and 7 AM.

In one embodiment, although the user sets the RF device(s) off (bypressing the RADIO OFF button 360, for example) other functionality ofthe device 300 is still operable (PDA functions, games, applications,day timer, etc.). In addition, unless also disabled by the user,notifications associated with this other functionality (e.g., calendaralarms) are also still operable.

Some RF devices connect to networks that save incoming messages on thenetwork when the RF device is disabled. In this case, after a period ofRF device disablement, a user may receive one or more incomingcommunications (and notifications) that notify the user that thesemessages were saved or simply a notification that the event occurred.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an RF device off warning and RFdevice on procedures according to an embodiment of the presentinvention. At step 1000, the RF device is off. A problem encountered isthat a user may forget that the RF device is off and activate a programor other device that uses the RF device. Automatic RF device activationmight solve this problem, but would create another problem in thecase(s) where the RF device was disabled due to presence in a no RFzone, such as a hospital or aircraft.

At step 1010, the user attempts to activate an RF control program orother device that uses the RF device for communications. The RF controlprogram may be, for example, a phone control program/device, a webclipping application, AOL chat, pager, instant messenger, etc. Theattempted activation triggers a warning procedure (a separate program,subroutine, or other procedure built into the RF control program, forexample) that displays a message to the user. The warning messageincludes, for example, a statement indicating that the RF device hasbeen disabled and a proceed button which the user may press if otheruser wishes to continue and have the RF device activated.

The present inventor research indicates that prompting a user in thismanner will remind the user why the RF device was disabled, whether thatreason was to save battery power, to keep from being interrupted, and/orbecause the user had entered a no RF zone. If the latter, the user maydecide, based on the warning message, to not continue use of RF deviceif the user is still located in a no RF zone.

In one embodiment, messages sent to/from the radio device 240 use aprotocol stack that performs all formatting and un-formatting needed tosend or receive the messages over the network communicated with by theradio device. Included in the protocol stack is a check routine thatdetermines if the radio device is currently active. If not active, thecheck routine then calls another program to display the warning messageand retrieve user instructions. If the user does not wish to activatethe radio devices, an error condition is returned from the protocolstack to the program or device that initially required RF device access(allowing the program to shutdown gracefully or provide the user withother options). If the user indicates that the RF device may be enabled,the RF device is automatically enabled and the message transaction iscompleted. The protocol stack may be, for example, a Mobitex stack usedin conjunction with RF devices for communicating on Mobitex networks.

FIG. 11 is one embodiment of an example warning message 1100 accordingto the present invention. With RF capabilities disabled, the user hasinvoked an application (instant messenger in this example) 1105 thatrequires RF capabilities. The RF device status is checked, and, sincethe RF device is disabled, the warning message 1100 is displayed. In oneembodiment, the warning message includes text 1110 explaining that theRF device is disabled. User selectable buttons to continue (YES 1120)and do not activate (NO 1130) are also provided. Since it is importantthat the RF device not be unintentionally activated, the do not activatebutton (NO 1130, for example) is provided as a default (a shaded orbolded button, for example) or selection requires an affirmative buttonpress or other response.

The texts and provided buttons of the warning message 1100 give the userthe option to continue (step 1040). If the user selects NO, the RFcontrol program is shut down without ever enabling the RF device (step1050). If the user selects to continue, the RF device is automaticallyenabled (step 1060) and the control program continues execution (step1070).

FIG. 12 is a screen shot of an embodiment of a wireless panel 1200 for apreference selection 1210, currently selected (or default) to be Off.Preferably, the radio off setting is the default setting for thewireless radio. When implemented on a Palm™ device, current wirelessradio settings are maintained across soft rests, but not hard resets.Following a hard rest the notification setting will default to OFF. Whenthe wireless radio setting is set to Off an airplane icon 1220 willappear in the lower right hand corner of the screen to indicate it issafe for airplane travel.

FIG. 13 is a screen shot of an embodiment of a wireless panel forselecting a radio preference. A drop down menu 1300 indicating choicesfor Off, Always On, and Schedule is provided for selection of WirelessRadio preferences.

FIG. 14 is a screen shot of an embodiment of a wireless panel for aradio on preference. Once the radio is On, a signal strength meter 1400is displayed. The signal strength meter indicates a percentage of signalstrength 1310 and displays bars (e-g., 1320, 1330) to graphicallyrepresent the signal strength.

FIG. 15 is a screen shot of an embodiment of a wireless panel for aradio schedule 1500 including ‘from:’ and ‘to:’ radio on times. Theschedule is invoked by selecting the schedule option from the wirelessradio drop down menu 1300. The radio schedule 1500 prompts the ‘from:’and ‘to:’ options to appear on the screen along with the signal strengthpercentage and bars. Tapping on ‘from’ will bring up a ‘Set Radio StartTime’ dialog 1600.

FIG. 16 is a screen shot of an embodiment of a wireless panel forselecting a radio on start time (via the ‘Set Radio Start Time’ dialog1600). The dialog 1600 includes hours, minutes and AM/PM selectionareas, and up/down arrows for adjusting a selected item. Tapping ‘OK’sends the user back to the wireless radio schedule panel.

FIG. 17 is a screen shot of an embodiment of the wireless radio schedulepanel with a user selected radio on start time shown 8:30 AM, 1700).FIG. 18 is a screen shot of an embodiment of a wireless panel forselecting a radio end time. Similar to the radio start time, an end timedialog 1800 allows adjustment of the end time and appropriate buttons toconfirm (OK) or disregard (Cancel) any times set by the dialog.

FIG. 19 is a screen shot of an embodiment of a wireless panel with userselected radio on start (1700) and end (1900) times. Again, signalstrength (1300) is shown. FIGS. 12-19 show specific embodiments of apossible implementation of the radio enablement/disablement andscheduling capabilities of the present invention. However, based on thepresent disclosure, many other arrangements may also be implementedwithout departing from the scope or spirit of the present invention.

Portions of the present invention may be conveniently implemented usinga conventional general purpose or a specialized digital computer ormicroprocessor programmed according to the teachings of the presentdisclosure, as will be apparent to those skilled in the computer art.

Appropriate software coding can readily be prepared by skilledprogrammers based on the teachings of the present disclosure, as will beapparent to those skilled in the software art. The invention may also beimplemented by the preparation of application specific integratedcircuits or by interconnecting an appropriate network of conventionalcomponent circuits, as will be readily apparent to those skilled in theart.

The present invention includes a computer program product which is astorage medium (media) having instructions stored thereon/in which canbe used to control, or cause, a computer to perform any of the processesof the present invention. The storage medium can include, but is notlimited to, any type of disk including floppy disks, mini disks (MD's),optical discs, DVD, CD-ROMs, micro-drive, and magneto-optical disks,ROMs, RAMS, EPROMs, EEPROMs, DRAMs, VRAMs, flash memory devices(including flash cards), magnetic or optical cards, nanosystems(including molecular memory ICs), RAID devices, remote datastorage/archive/warehousing, or any type of media or device suitable forstoring instructions and/or data.

Stored on any one of the computer readable medium (media), the presentinvention includes software for controlling both the hardware of thegeneral purpose/specialized computer or microprocessor, and for enablingthe computer or microprocessor to interact with a human user or othermechanism utilizing the results of the present invention. Such softwaremay include, but is not limited to, device drivers, operating systems,and user applications. Ultimately, such computer readable media furtherincludes software for performing the present invention, as describedabove.

Included in the programming (software) of the general/specializedcomputer or microprocessor are software modules for implementing theteachings of the present invention, including, but not limited to,placing and receiving telephone calls or other communication operations,setting notifications on or off based on user inputs, includingdetermining a scheduled time, setting alarms for waking processes forturning notification on/off and/or shutting down/activating RFdevice(s), providing RF disabled or enabled confirmations, and thedisplay, storage, or communication of results according to the processesof the present invention.

Obviously, numerous modifications and variations of the presentinvention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is thereforeto be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, theinvention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically describedherein.

1. A mobile computing device, comprising: a radio unit configured tocommunicate with a network; a processing unit for executing computerprogram instructions, the processing unit coupled to the radio unit; amemory device coupled to the processing unit, the memory device havingexecutable computer program instructions tangibly embodied thereon, theexecutable computer program instructions comprising instructions for:receiving an event through the radio unit; determining a notificationmechanism associated with the event; determining whether thenotification mechanism is scheduled to be off; issuing no notificationfor the event responsive to the notification mechanism being scheduledoff; and issuing a notification of the event responsive to thenotification mechanism being scheduled on and an occurrence of ascheduled notification time for the notification mechanism.
 2. Themobile computing device of claim 1, further comprising: a displayscreen; wherein the instructions for issuing the notification of theevent comprises instructions for generating a graphical user interfaceon the display screen having information about the event.
 3. The mobilecomputing device of claim 1, wherein the communication mechanismcomprises one of an email, a voice mail service, and a telephone call.4. The mobile computing device of claim 1, wherein the notification ofthe event comprises at least one of a notification alarm, a buzzer, anda notification message.
 5. A mobile computing device, comprising: aradio unit configured to communicate with a network; a processing unitfor executing computer program instructions, the processing unit coupledto the radio unit; a memory device coupled to the processing unit, thememory device having executable computer program instructions tangiblyembodied thereon, the executable computer program instructionscomprising instructions for: providing a plurality of functionsutilizing the radio unit to communicate with the network; providing aselection mechanism for a user to selectively enable or disable each ofthe plurality of functions; and responsive to one of the plurality offunctions being disabled, prohibiting the one of the plurality offunctions from accessing the radio unit without affecting otherfunctions of the plurality of functions utilizing the radio unit.
 6. Themobile computing device of claim 5, further comprises: a display screen;wherein the instructions for providing a selection mechanism comprisesinstructions for generating a graphical user interface on the displayscreen listing at least one of the plurality of functions.
 7. The mobilecomputing device of claim 5, wherein the plurality of functions compriseat least one of an email, a voice mail service, and a telephone call. 8.A method for notifying a user of an event, comprising: receiving theevent through a radio unit of a mobile computing device; determining anotification mechanism associated with the event; determining whetherthe notification mechanism is scheduled to be off; issuing nonotification for the event responsive to the notification mechanismbeing scheduled off; and issuing a notification of the event responsiveto the notification mechanism being scheduled on and an occurrence of ascheduled notification time for the notification mechanism.
 9. Themethod of claim 8, further comprising: generating a graphical userinterface on a display screen of the mobile computing device, thegraphical user interface having information about the event.
 10. Themethod of claim 8, wherein the communication mechanism comprises atleast one of an email, a voice mail service, and a telephone call. 11.The method of claim 8, wherein the notification of the event comprisesat least one of a notification alarm, a buzzer, and a notificationmessage.